9 minutes into her press convention after her first main win, Coco Gauff was requested about her targets within the sport.
She did not hesitate, and even take a pause to breathe earlier than responding.
“I wish to be the best,” she mentioned with none emotion in her voice. “My dad informed me that I might do that once I was eight. Clearly you by no means imagine it. I am nonetheless, like, not 100% assured. However, like, you must simply say issues. You by no means know what occurs.”
Gauff, then simply 15, had simply defeated one among her childhood heroes in seven-time main champion Venus Williams on Centre Court docket at Wimbledon. A 12 months faraway from her head-turning junior title on the French Open and simply months after recording her first win on the WTA Tour, Gauff had acquired a wild card into Wimbledon’s qualifying draw. Whereas to the informal fan she was a digital unknown, tennis insiders had been buzzing about her for a while.
However after her win over Williams, everybody knew who she was. “Cocomania,” because it was dubbed on the time, was born, and the fervor and intrigue elevated with each match she received. By the top of her magical fourth-round run on the All England Membership, everybody appeared to imagine simply how nice she might turn into.
Transitioning from a 15-year-old with little strain to an in a single day famous person anticipated to win each match was not straightforward. Whereas she made regular progress and reached the 2022 French Open last, it might take Gauff 4 years to assert her first main title on the US Open in 2023. 5 extra Slam tournaments then got here and went with out one other last look.
It was clear she was nice, as evidenced by her 2024 WTA Finals victory and back-to-back last appearances within the 1000-level clay occasions main into the French Open, however she nonetheless had a methods to go to be able to in the future attain her purpose of turning into the best.
However she bought nearer in Paris these previous two weeks. Gauff, the No. 2 seed, stormed via the draw — dropping only one set en path to the ultimate. She claimed the French Open title on Saturday behind a resilient comeback victory 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-4 over world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in two hours and 38 minutes. When it was over she fell on the clay, mendacity down together with her arms protecting her mouth in obvious disbelief. The tears streamed down her face whereas she waited for the trophy ceremony from her chair.
It is unsure if Gauff, nonetheless simply 21, will in the future make good on her final purpose, the lofty, overly formidable one she’s spoken brazenly about since childhood that will put her in elite firm reserved for different one-name superstars like Serena, Novak, Roger and Rafa. However together with her triumph at Roland Garros and the start of what looks like her prime, she cements her spot as one of many best proper now.
“She has so many [major titles] forward of her,” Chris Evert, the 18-time Slam champion, mentioned on the published after the match. “I imply we noticed that at 15 years previous. We noticed when she beat Venus at Wimbledon. We thought, ‘This lady’s going to be successful 10, 12, 14 main titles. She’s bought the sport and if she will be able to keep wholesome…’ She simply loves the sport and she or he’s going to be round for a protracted, very long time successful majors.”
Gauff’s identify is already talked about amongst among the sport’s all-time greats. Saturday marked her twenty seventh match win at Roland Garros — tying her with Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario because the fourth-most within the Open Period for a lady earlier than her twenty second birthday. Her semifinal victory broke a tie with Serena Williams for the second-most by an American lady in the identical class, and Gauff trails simply Evert, who received seven French Open titles.
She additionally turned the primary American to win the title at Roland Garros since Serena a decade in the past. And he or she is simply the fifth countrywoman within the Open Period to win a number of Slam titles at 21 or youthful, becoming a member of Serena, Evert, Venus and Tracy Austin.
Michelle Obama and Billie Jean King had been amongst these to congratulate her on social media instantly after the win. Spike Lee, who was in attendance and sitting courtside, was the primary individual she hugged in celebration.
However Gauff wasn’t desirous about historical past or about her ever-growing fame throughout Saturday’s match. Nor was she considering of her earlier matches towards Sabalenka, or the 2023 US Open last by which she defeated her. Gauff remembered what it felt prefer to lose the 2022 French Open last with the trophy on the road, and she or he was decided to not expertise that ache once more.
So, after shedding the one-hour-and-eighteen-minute first set in a tiebreak, Gauff knew what she needed to do and confirmed no seen indicators of frustration or agony. She refused to expertise the identical heartbreak at Court docket Philippe-Chatrier and masterfully and clinically took management. Gauff wanted simply 33 minutes to assert the second set and dominated together with her sturdy serving, aggressive returns and blistering velocity. However it was maybe her resolve and poise beneath strain that was probably the most spectacular.
Should you can dream it, you are able to do it ✍️ @cocogauff#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/cGYTZAStDc
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) June 7, 2025
“She’s a lot extra mature than a 21-year-old,” mentioned former world No. 1 and 2018 Australian Open champion Caroline Wozniacki after the match on the published.
Sabalenka, who could not conceal her apparent disappointment after the match, praised Gauff for being a “fighter and a tough employee” throughout her on-court speech. For Gauff, it was three years within the making. “I simply remembered, , that ceremony when Iga [Swiatek] received, I simply remembered attempting to take all of it in and take note of each element and simply really feel like I needed that have for myself,” Gauff mentioned on Saturday. “So when the anthem bought performed, I vividly keep in mind watching her, fairly emotional when the Polish anthem bought performed. I used to be, like, ‘Wow, that is such a cool second.’ So when the anthem bought performed immediately, I type of had these reflections.”
Gauff’s emotional maturity and struggle had been on show all through the clay season, by which she defeated a number of main champions and top-10 stars together with Iga Swiatek, Emma Raducanu, Zheng Qinwen and Mirra Andreeva (twice), and through her run at Roland Garros. She wanted three units towards fellow American Madison Keys, the reigning Australian Open champion, after shedding the opener in a tiebreak.
Within the semifinals, she wanted to battle Lois Boisson, the shock French breakout star, and a whole stadium rooting towards her. She allowed Boisson, who defeated the likes of No. 3 seed Jessica Pegula and No. 6 Andreeva in Paris, to only three complete video games.
“She was actually stable, and I could not play my sport immediately as a result of she was simply too good,” Boisson mentioned on Thursday.
Whereas Gauff stays on the No. 2 rating, and three,470 factors behind Sabalenka, she may have alternatives to slim that deficit all through the summer time — beginning in the course of the upcoming grass-court season. She is subsequent slated to play at Berlin, which will get underway subsequent week, however was uncertain on Saturday if she would stay within the draw. Whereas Gauff has by no means superior previous the fourth spherical at Wimbledon — she matched her debut run in 2021 and 2024 — she will definitely look to construct on her momentum on the All England Membership this 12 months.
From there, she’s going to flip her sights to the hard-court summer time sequence and the US Open, the place all eyes might be upon her from the house crowd and the New York media. However she’s confirmed she will be able to deal with the strain and the expectations — and has the sport and perspective to deal with all of it. Simply moments after posing with the trophy in entrance of a whole bunch of photographers, Sloane Stephens, the 2017 US Open champion, requested Gauff what was subsequent.
“Hopefully one other one,” Gauff mentioned. “Yeah, undoubtedly one other one. However for now, simply having fun with this one and I am simply glad to get one other title to my resume.”
Now nearly six years faraway from her head-turning, auspicious introduction to the tennis world, and Gauff has the identical confidence, self-belief and joyful exuberance as she did then. She stays equally dedicated — if no more so — to her want to be nice, however time has given her one thing maybe much more beneficial and essential to reaching that: perspective.
When requested on Thursday after advancing to the ultimate how she managed to not get overwhelmed by the magnitude of the scenario, she once more did not hesitate.
“I feel simply realizing how minuscule it’s,” Gauff mentioned. “Like everyone is coping with approach larger issues in life than shedding a last … I am certain there are a whole bunch of gamers that will kill to win or lose a last, so simply understanding that, makes me notice how fortunate and privileged I’m to be on this place.
“At first I believed it might be the top of the world if I misplaced, and , the solar nonetheless rose the subsequent day. So understanding, whatever the consequence, the solar will nonetheless rise.”
